Forget the rose-tinted glasses; it seems that grey clouds are more likely to make a student decide to apply to a university, according to research by Professor Uri Simonsohn of the University of California, San Diego. In a survey of students, the study finds that, unsurprisingly, undergraduates prefer studying on cloudier days and having free time on sunnier ones. These associations may mean that weather during a college visit tints how a place is perceived. In particular, universities visited on cloudy days may seem more compatible with academic activities. The survey collected data on campus visits by 1,284 prospective students to a university well known for its academic strengths. The results showed that one standard deviation increase in cloud cover was associated with a 9% increase in enrolment. Pass me my parasol, it's time to abandon the office.

No such luck for Ed Balls, the education secretary, who is going to be busy over the coming week, addressing the annual conference of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in Manchester on Wednesday.

Report card

Tiny tots could be the next casualties of nationwide budget cuts, as changes to the funding formula for early-years education may leave many state-funded nurseries struggling to make ends meet.

In the pink How can universities support gay students if they don't know who they are? Admission forms request information from prospective students that help them to identify their interests, but it's illegal to ask about sexual orientation. But the lobby group Stonewall is set to publish a guide to the top gay-friendly institutions. Watch this space.

What you said

So after the majority of the AS and A2 syllabuses, textbooks, etc. have just been rewritten at huge expense and teachers have spent vast amounts of time in training and preparation to deliver these new syllabuses, the Tories decide they should scrap the lot and start again. My sympathies are for the upcoming A-level students who, once again, will have to suffer through a period of change which will impact upon the quality of the education that they receive, from the way it is taught to the way they are marked, to the way that their results will be held in disdain in the wider market. I despair.

Quote of the week

Experiments are vital in the science classroom. Photograph: Getty Images

A new poll conducted for the national network of Science Learning Centres reveals that many children are now being deprived of the chance to conduct experiments in their science lessons.

Professor Sir John Holman, director of the National Science Learning Centre, said:Learning science without practicals is like studying literature without books. ... Activities such as ripple tanks, dissection and microbiology, which were once to be found in school science labs up and down the country, are becoming endangered species.

From the margins

Traffic wardens: are you attractive enough to persuade one not to give you a ticket? Photograph: Manchester city council

London's beautiful people are fairly evenly distributed across the capital, according to a new Beauty Map, but it seems that when it comes to using those looks to persuade members of the opposite sex to do favours for them, women are more successful than men. Not surprisingly, perhaps, "men reported more frequently having been successfully persuaded by the tactic".

Stories of the day

Sweet truth Chocolate really does cheer you up. It's a scientific fact. And orange can calm you down, while lemon can make you a better driver, according to new research from the Human Olfaction Laboratory at Middlesex University. So now you can embrace Easter without guilt.

Size matters When it comes to getting pupils into Oxbridge, three FE colleges have a great track record – and it all comes down to size, apparently.